South Australian teachers have been urged to stop performing duties not directly related to learning when school resumes for term three amid ongoing negotiations for a new enterprise agreement.
The Australian Education Union says public schools have an escalating staffing crisis.
“Educators are papering over the cracks with their unpaid goodwill and the government is taking advantage of it," branch president Andrew Gohl said.
“Parents probably don’t realise their child’s teacher is working 50 hours to keep a broken system running, working late into the night and on weekends to fulfil data and admin requirements."
Teachers return to the classrooms on Monday after a two-week break.
Mr Gohl said the union had been negotiating a new pay and conditions agreement with the state government for more than six months, pursuing a bold platform focused on reducing workload and increasing student support.
But he said it was clear the education department did not understand the issues and had not offered any solutions.
"We’ve put forward over 20 constructive proposals based on extensive consultation and backed by academic research. All the minister needs to do is agree to them," Mr Gohl said.
